It’s not your grandmother’s ball, and gowns are most definitely optional.

Though the doors of the Jefferson County Library are closed to the public, many services are being offered online. Online is also where the library’s major yearly fundraiser, the Winter Campaign, is taking place.

This year, library supporters are invited to attend the “Stay Home and Read a Book Ball,” a virtual party that will take place through December.

Patrons who support the library can check out books, and if they want to join the ball, they’ll receive packets of tea or cocoa to enjoy as they cozy up with their reading material.

Participants are also invited to review or share impressions of what they’ve read on the library’s Facebook page and, in exchange, it’s hoped patrons will donate some of the money they would have spent attending a gala for a donation to the library’s virtual fundraiser.

“As difficult as these times may be, we hope that the ‘Stay Home and Read a Book Ball’ offers an uplifting opportunity to join a larger community from the comfort of people’s homes,” Library Director Tamara Meredith said. “Even as we shelter in place, books can expand our horizons to the world at large.”

More information about the “Stay Home and Read a Book Ball” is available at www.jclibrary.info or by going to the library’s Facebook page.

In the wake of the library’s slated reopening being canceled, patrons are invited to use a concierge service, in which library staff will pick materials based on a user’s interests. Online ordering and curbside pickup are also available.